Rioters clashed with police officers on the Capitol’s West Plaza as their perimeter collapsed.
Rioters scale a wall outside the Capitol as the mob of Donald Trump supporters stormed the building.
If he wins, he could appoint an attorney general who could seek dismissal of the case, or potentially order a pardon for himself.
Rioters scale a wall outside the Capitol as the mob of Donald Trump supporters stormed the building on Jan. 6, 2021.
In Trump’s telling, the mob on Jan. 6 assembled peacefully to preserve democracy, not upend it, and the rioters were agitated but not armed. They were not insurrectionists but rather 1776-style “patriots.” And now they are being persecuted by the Justice Department, juries and judges for their political beliefs.
Rioters gathered in front of an arched entrance to the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace doors, where rioters clashed with police officers guarding the tunnel.
He was an invited guest for a “J6 Awards Gala” fundraiser at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, for those charged with crimes connected to the riot. His campaign later said he wouldn’t attend the fundraiser, which was then postponed. Organizers did not respond to requests for comment.
When pressed during a recent event, Trump said he “absolutely” would pardon rioters who assaulted police — if they were “innocent.” When the interviewer noted she was talking about convicted rioters, Trump replied that they were convicted “by a very tough system.”
Then-President Donald Trump spoke to a crowd of his supporters during his “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House.
Then-President Donald Trump spoke to a crowd of his supporters during his “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Those J6 warriors, they were warriors, but they were really more than anything else — they’re victims of what happened,” Trump said in a rally after his conviction. Falsely claiming the rioters were “set up” by police, he appeared to threaten revenge: “That blows two ways, that blows two ways, believe me.”
Body camera video captured the violent attacks by rioters against officers guarding a tunnel entrance on the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace.
In response to several questions from the AP about Trump’s support of the Jan. 6 defendants and pledge to pardon the rioters, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in an email: “Kamala Harris and Joe Biden’s Department of Justice has spent more time prosecuting President Trump and targeting Americans for peacefully protesting on January 6th than criminals, illegal immigrants, and terrorists who are committing violent crimes in Democrat-run cities every day.”
Many Republicans have lined up behind Trump to minimize the violence and push these lies: Police welcomed the mob into the building. Undercover FBI operatives and left-wing antifa activists instigated the attack.
His running mate, JD Vance, has echoed Trump’s claims that Jan. 6 defendants are being treated unfairly, referring to them in a 2022 social media post as “political prisoners,” and describing their “captivity” as “an assault on democracy.”
Lawmakers and congressional staffers took cover in the House gallery as rioters stormed the Capitol.
Lawmakers and congressional staffers took cover in the House gallery as rioters stormed the Capitol.
Law enforcement officers pointed weapons at a door to the House as rioters tried to force their way into the chamber.
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick lay in honor in the building that he defended from rioters a day before his death. The Washington, D.C., medical examiner’s office ruled that Sicknick suffered two strokes and died from natural causes after helping other officers try to hold off the mob.
